WOOL SILK COTTON LINEN
Various kinds of wool. Wool from goats. Fleeces. Wool
dyeing. Scouring of wool. Silk, preparation for dyeing.
Cotton, cleansing and galling of. Indian methods of
preparing cotton and linen for dyeing. BANCROFT on the
preparing of cotton and linen for dyeing. Linen. On water
for dyeing.
ON WOOL.--The quality of wool varies considerably. British wools are
of various kinds:--
_Highland, Welsh and Irish_ wools are from small sheep, not far
removed from the wild state, with irregular short stapled fleeces.
_Forest or Mountain sheep_ (Herdwick, Exmoor, Blackfaced, Limestone,
Cheviot) have better wool, especially the Cheviot which is very thick
& good for milling.
_Ancient Upland_, such as South Down, are smaller sheep than the last
named, but the wool is softer and finer.
_Long Woolled sheep_ (Lincolns, Leicester) with long staple wool
(record length, 36 in.) and the fleeces weighing up to 12 lbs. The
Leicester fleece is softer, finer and better than the Lincoln.
To the end of the 18th century _Spanish wool_ was the finest and best
wool in the world. Spanish sheep have since been introduced into
various countries, such as Saxony, Australia, Cape Colony, New
Zealand, and some of the best wools now come from the colonies.
_Alpaca, Vicuna and Llama_ wools are obtained from different species
of South American goats.
_Mohair_ is obtained from the Angora goat of Asia Minor.
_Kashmir_ wool is got from the Thibetan goat.
_Camel_ hair is the soft under wool of the camel, which is shed
annually. It is of a brown colour.
The colour of wool varies from white to a very dark brown black, with
all shades of fawn, grey and brown in between. The natural colours are
not absolutely fast to light but tend to bleach slightly with the sun.
Fleeces are of various kinds, the principal being: _Lambs_, 3 to 6
months growth, the finest, softest and most elastic of wool. _Hogs and
Tegs_: the first shearing of sheep that have not been shorn as lambs.
_Wethers_: all clips succeeding the first shearing.
Wool comes into the market in the following condition. 1) _In the
grease_, not having been washed and containing all impurities. 2)
_Washed_, with some of the grease removed and fairly clean. 3)
_Scoured_, thoroughly cleaned & all grease removed.
ON WOOL DYEING.--There are four principal methods of dyeing wool.
1st.--The wool is boiled first with the mordant and then in a fresh
bath with the dye. This method of dyeing is the most satisfactory and
gives brighter and faster colours than the other methods. It is not
necessary to throw away the solution after the mordanting has been
done, but it can be replenished for a fresh lot of wool; a separate
bath is used for the dye.
2nd.--The wool is boiled first with the dye and, when it has absorbed
as much of the colour as possible, the mordant is added to the same
bath, thus fixing the colour. This is called the "stuffing" and
"saddening" method; the "stuffing" being the boiling of the wool with
the dye stuff and the "saddening" the fixing the colour by the
mordant.
A separate bath can be used for each of these processes, in which case
each bath can be replenished and used again for a fresh lot of wool.
3rd.--The wool is boiled with the mordant and dye in the same bath
together. The colour, as a rule, is not so fast & good as with a
separate bath, though with some dyes a brighter colour is obtained.
4th.--The wool is mordanted, then dyed, then mordanted again
(saddened). This method is adopted to ensure an extremely fast colour.
The mordant in this case should be used rather sparingly.
Wool can be dyed either in the fleece, in the yarn or in the woven
cloth. Raw wool always contains a certain amount of natural grease.
This should not be washed out until it is ready for dyeing, as the
grease keeps the moth out to a considerable extent. Hand spun wool is
always spun in the oil to facilitate spinning. All grease and oil must
be scoured out before dyeing is begun, and this must be done very
thoroughly or the wool will take the colour unevenly.
The principal detergent known from earliest times is stale urine. In
the Highlands this is used in the proportion of 1 part to 5 of water.
It is the best scouring agent and leaves the wool soft and elastic.
Carbonate of soda is also used. But a good pure soap is the most
convenient scouring agent. A suds should be made with hot water, and
the wool, which has been soaked in warm water previously, should be
well squeezed and worked in the suds till all the grease is removed.
This should be done two or three times if needed, and then the wool
rinsed out thoroughly in clean water. Soda is apt to make the wool
harsh and should be avoided. A little Ammonia added to the washing
water helps.
To prevent yarn felting when it is scoured, it should be first steeped
in hot water and left to cool. Soft soap is best for long fine wool.
Urine for short wools; or urine and soda ash.
_Another way of cleansing wool._ Make a hot bath of 4 parts water and
1 part urine, enter wool, teasing it and opening it out to admit the
full action of the liquid. After 20 minutes immersion, remove and
allow to drain. Then rinse in clear running water and allow to dry.
Use no soap. The liquid can be used again. The wool often loses one
fifth of its weight in the process of washing.
_To soften yarn_--In a gallon of hot water dissolve half pound of
common soda, then add half-pint of sweet oil and stir well. A little
of this added to the washing water, for some colours, will soften the
yarn.
_To bleach wool_--The wool is suspended in a closed room on hoops, and
under the wool chafing dishes are placed with lighted coals on which
powdered sulphur is cast. The room door is afterwards shut so that the
smoke may be the longer retained to act on the wool, which is to
remain until it is entirely whitened.
ON SILK.--There are two kinds of silk, 1) _raw silk_ (reeled silk,
thrown silk, drawn silk), and 2) _waste silk_ or spun silk.
Raw silk is that directly taken from the cocoons. Waste silk is the
silk from cocoons that are damaged in some way so that they cannot be
reeled off direct. They are therefore carded and spun, like wool or
cotton.
Silk in the raw state is covered with a silk gum which must be boiled
off before dyeing is begun. It is tied up in canvas bags and boiled up
in a strong solution of soap for three or four hours until all the gum
is boiled off. If it is yellow gum, the silk is wrought first in a
solution of soft soap at a temperature just below boiling point for
about an hour, then put into bags and boiled. After boiling, the soap
is well washed out.
Generally speaking, the affinity of silk for dyes is similar but
weaker in character to that of wool. The general method for dyeing is
the same as for wool, except that in most cases lower temperatures are
used in the mordanting. In some cases, soaking in a cold concentrated
solution of the mordant is sufficient. The dyeing of some colours is
also at a low temperature.
_Of the preparation of raw silk._ For every pound of raw silk, take
¼ lb. of soap; first put the silk into a bag, or so make it up that
tangling may be prevented, then let it boil together for 2 hours,
after which it must be very well cleansed, and so it is ready to dye
all sorts of colours, being first allomed.[1]
_How the boiled silk must be allomed._ In proportion to every pound of
silk, take ¼ lb. of Allom, melt in a little kettle or skillet, and
when melted, throw it in to a tub of water, into which put the silk to
steep, where let it lie a whole night.[1]
_To soften silk after dyeing._ Into a large vessel nearly full of
water, a solution of soap is poured, in the proportion of from 4 to 5
lbs. of soap for every 110 lbs. of silk. The solution of soap is
strained through a cloth into the water and well mixed. The silk is
then introduced & left for about quarter of an hour after which it is
wrung out and dried.
ON COTTON.--Cotton is the down surrounding the seeds in pods of
certain shrubs and trees growing in tropical and semi-tropical
countries. It was first introduced into Europe by the Saracens and was
manufactured into cloth in Spain in the early 13th century. Cotton
cloth was made in England in the early 17th century. The colour of
cotton varies from deep yellow to white. The fibre differs in length,
the long stapled being the most valued. Cotton is difficult to dye and
requires a special preparation. It is first boiled with water till
thoroughly softened and wetted. Then alumed in the proportion of 1 of
alum to 4 of the cotton (see page 28). It is then galled. The galling
is done with different proportions of gall-nuts and other astringents
(such as tannic acid, myrobalams, sumach, catechu) according to the
quality of the astringents and the effect wished to be obtained. If
gall-nuts are used they are bruised, then boiled for about two hours
in a quantity of water. The bath is then allowed to cool till the hand
can bear it. The cotton is worked well in this solution and then left
for 24 hours. After which it is wrung out and dried.
Cotton is sometimes boiled in sour water in order to cleanse it:
sometimes an alkaline ley is used: the cotton must be boiled in it for
2 hours, then wrung out and rinsed in clean water and dried. Cotton
dyeing has been carried on for centuries in the East. In India "before
a cloth is ready to be dyed with a fast colour, it has generally to
undergo a preliminary process of preparation more or less elaborate,
the different stages of which may be recited as washing, bleaching,
dunging, galling, aluming, or mordanting, and again washing." (_A
Monograph on dyes and dyeing in the Bombay Presidency_, by C. G. H.
Fawcett, 1896.) It is washed first of all to remove all impurities,
whether those naturally belonging to the fibre or those purposely
introduced during the processes of spinning and weaving. The bleaching
removes grease, etc. This is done in India by the sun, air and
moisture. The dunging process consists of passing the cotton through a
hot solution of cow dung, which renders the dye fast. This is
sometimes replaced by substitutes, such as the phosphates of soda and
lime, silicates of soda, etc. The next operation of galling is an
important step in the Indian process of dyeing. It is applied to
cotton, linen and silk. Vegetable infusions containing tannin are
applied to the cloth. Those mostly used are myrobalams, pomegranate
rind, tamarisk galls, and pistachio galls. The cloth is then alumed,
washed, and is then ready to be dyed.
_Bancroft_ says:--"The fibres of linen or cotton when spun or woven
are prepared for the dyer by being first boiled in water with a
suitable proportion of potash (which for linen should be made caustic,
in order that it may act more strongly upon the oily and resinous
matters abounding in flax) and afterwards bleached by exposure upon
the grass to sun and air. But as this operation commonly leaves a
portion of earthy matter in the linen or cotton, it ought to be soaked
or steeped in water soured by sulphuric acid, to dissolve and remove
this earthy matter, taking care afterwards to wash or rinse off the
acid."
A few of the natural dye stuffs are capable of dyeing cotton direct,
without a mordant, such as Turmeric, Barberry bark, safflower,
annatto. For other dyes cotton has a special attraction, such as
catechu, fustic, logwood.
ON LINEN.--Linen is flax, derived from the decomposed stalks of a
plant of the genus of Linum. It grows chiefly in Russia, Belgium,
France, Holland, and Ireland. The plants after being gathered are
subjected to a process called "retting", which separates the fibre
from the decaying part of the plant. In Ireland and Russia this is
usually done in stagnant water, producing a dark coloured flax. In
Belgium, Holland and France, retting is carried out in running water,
and the resulting flax is a lighter colour. Linen is more difficult to
dye than cotton, probably on account of the hard nature of the fibre.
The same processes are used for dyeing linen as for cotton.
"Linen thread is dyed in the same manner as cotton, only, that
previous to its being purged like cotton thread, it is usual to boil
it in water, adding for every pound of thread a quarter pound of
chopped sorrel. Oil of vitriol is, however, more convenient and better
than sorrel."--D'Apligny.
_To Bleach Linen._--(For 13 to 15 yards linen) Boil ½ lb. soap and
½ lb. soda in a gallon of water. Put it in a copper and fill up with
water, leaving room for the linen to be put in. Put in the linen and
bring to the boil. Boil for 2 hours, keeping it under the water and
covered. Stir occasionally. Then spread out on the grass for 3 days,
watering it when it gets dry. Repeat this boiling and grassing for 3
weeks. Your linen is then pure white.
_To bleach linen a cream colour._--Boil ½ lb. soap and ½ lb. soda in a
gallon of water. Fill copper up with water and put in linen. Boil for
2 hours. Repeat this once a day for 4 days. The linen should not be
wrung out but kept in the water till ready to be put into the fresh
bath.
ON WATER.--A constant supply of clean soft water is a necessity for
the dyer. Rain water should be collected as much as possible, as this
is the best water to use. The dye house should be by a river or
stream, so that the dyer can wash with a continuous supply. Spring and
well water is as a rule hard, and should be avoided. In washing, as
well as in dyeing, hard water is altogether injurious for wool. It
ruins the brilliancy of colour, and prevents the dyeing of some
colours. Temporary hardness can be overcome by boiling the water (20
to 30 minutes) before using. An old method of purifying water, which
is still used by some silk and wool scourers, is to boil the water
with a little soap, skimming off the surface as it boils. In many
cases it is sufficient to add a little acetic acid to the water.
_Berthollet_ says,--"Whenever, therefore, a water is limpid, when its
flow is constant, when it has no sensible taste, and dissolves soap
well, it may be regarded as very proper for dyeing." He also goes on
to say that for correcting water that is bad, sour water is
principally used, that is, water in which bran has been fermented.
FOOTNOTE:
[1] From a dye book of 1705.